The End Where I Begin
by Aiden Stone
Summary: Katherine Pierce was the complete opposite to Elijah Mikaelson's moral demeanor; manipulative with her ledger dripping red. But Elijah still believed that the sweet girl of 1492 who wanted to play chase was in there. Katherine wanted to know why. Set after 500 Years of Solitude.


**Title: The End Where I Begin**

 **Summary: Katherine Pierce was the complete opposite to Elijah Mikaelson's moral demeanor; manipulative with her ledger dripping red. But Elijah still believed that the sweet girl of 1492 who wanted to play chase was in there. Katherine wanted to know why. Set after 500 Years of Solitude.**

 **Author's Note: Finally! After a two-year hiatus (due to my academes), I am back with a new Kalijah fic. This is just a one-shot though, and apparently it's another sad one. It's been two and a half years since Katherine died and I still haven't felt the justice of Elijah's lack of emotions about her death. Now assuming that it had happened off screen and the beautiful Julie Plec has left it to the mind of the fans to imagine what could have happened, I wanted to make a little something that would be enough to sort of explain what happened.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own the Vampire Diaries and the characters mentioned in this story. This fanfiction is only for entertainment** **and leisure purposes of the fans, myself included, and not of monetary value.**

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" _ **Sometimes your first scars won't ever fade away."**_

Going out of the Salvatore Boarding House was not an easy task to accomplish. Katherine Pierce knew the moment she decided to take over Elena Gilbert's body that every one of those pathetic idiots would snap her neck on sight and keep her locked up until they find a way to get their precious Elena back. That would mean excruciating tortures at the hand of Damon Salvatore, boring life lectures from Stefan, witchy voodoo experiments from Bonnie and a basic bitch backlash from Caroline. Katherine has been on the bad end of the Scooby Gang Rescue Mission so many times that she already know what everyone would plan if ever things got bad; the reason why Katherine always gets the drop on them.

Katherine was a natural strategist. She always had a plan A, B, C, all the way up to Z squared. She thought about posing as Elena, like she's done many times before, but there are at least half a dozen people inside the manor that happens to be Elena's closest friends, one slip and she's toast. It's not that she's doubting her theatrical abilities (because let's all be honest, Katherine Pierce is great at everything), it's just that the gypsy spell was a lot for her to handle and right now, she's seeing fours. So she sneaked out, ducking at every corner before Jeremy or Matt or Damon could see her, raced through the door before Bonnie or Caroline could notice and went out quietly.

Before Katherine could even walk 50 meters away from the Salvatore Boarding House, a voice called to her, "Elena, love. Long time no see." Katherine inhaled so sharply it made her ears hurt. She turned around to see Klaus Mikaelson standing from behind her, a smile plastered on his face. Katherine swallowed down her disgust.

"Klaus. What are you doing here?" Katherine had asked, maybe a little too aggressively. Her intonation must have not be that different from Elena's because Klaus didn't even seem to be phased by her reaction. Of course, she knew everyone who was unfortunate enough to meet Klaus and miraculously live through it probably talks to him that way anyway. Klaus' smile turned into a nonchalant grin.

"Why, I came to pay my respects to Katerina of course. Rebuilding my empire in New Orleans could wait. Katerina and I had shared a history of sorts; I thought it would only be fitting." Klaus gestured as he talked. Katherine resisted the urge to retort. She wanted to tell him that he wouldn't even be back in New Orleans if it wasn't for her, but she bit her tongue. Naturally, Klaus would want to rub her misfortune in her face. A life of 500 years being a running target only to die as a withering and brittle human, oh how hilarious would that be for Klaus Mikaelson. Sense of humor was not really a Mikaelson trait. Which reminded her, if Klaus was here and Rebekah (from what Stefan had told her) was too, then why wasn't Elijah?

"Where's Elijah?" Katherine asked. Klaus knit his eyebrows. Thinking fast, Katherine spoke. "The last time I saw him, I had my emotions off, and we were in Willoughby. We were talking about Katherine." Klaus mouthed an 'ah' and put his hands behind his back, his face amused.

"I always forget my brother's fascination with the Petrova women." _**You**_ _had much more than fascination,_ Katherine thought. "Elijah chose to stay at the Quarter, man the walls if you may. I'm afraid Katerina meant less to him than you thought." A sudden pang went into Katherine's chest and she could feel tears about to dwell on her eyes.

"Why are you so civil?" Katherine needed to keep her mind of it. Stupid human emotions, it was still in her, probably because she had been human for far too long for her taste. Klaus shrugged. "Maybe I'm a changed man." Katherine again, stopped her tongue from biting back an insult. "I have to go." Was all Katherine could say as she used her vampire speed to get away from Klaus.

Katherine didn't know why she was making a big deal out of this. Wasn't it just a few weeks ago when she told Nadia she wanted Stefan? Also, wasn't it a few months ago when Elijah had ended everything between them? She was not the one to get hung up but what was this behavior? Backlash of humanity or was it Elena's subconscious emotions?

Suddenly, Katherine remembered when she was lying on her death bed. Damon had been playing tricks on her mind, making illusions of Jenna and John, torturing her. Then she heard Elijah's voice, and she remembered feeling like she was safe, and she can finally be at peace. When she thought Elijah had said her name, her true name, she put her guards down, which she did only for him. The thought of Elijah at her side soothed her, which was why it hurt ten times more than the other two illusions combined. Damon's words pierced through Katherine like shattered glass, and for once she admitted that every single word that Damon had told was true.

She was alone. She always has been. She manipulated every single being she has met, pushed away those that she started to how even the slightest bit of human emotion for. She doesn't even have to look far for proof. Nadia was her daughter, she looked for Katherine for centuries, and when she found her Nadia gave her a way to stay alive which Katherine rejected only to do it anyway, not because she wanted to be with Nadia but because she simply decided she would rather not die. Pushing away people has become a mechanism to Katherine's personality that ended up with her truly having no one.

But still she had hope. She hoped that Elijah was really there to call Damon off, that it was actually him who whispered her name, the one who actually wanted to say goodbye. All the hope she felt faded away now and is replaced by the bitter feeling of betrayal. Betrayal of the trick played upon her, betrayal of the promises he had broken, and the betrayal of her own emotions. So now, she's come to face another betrayal. The betrayal of her sanity. She went to a payphone near by The Mystic Grill and dropped a few quarters. She jabbed in the number she had memorized and etched at the back of her mind and listened as the phone rang.

Ring. _One._ Ring. _Two._ Ring. _Three._

"Hello, who is this?" the familiar heavy English accent spoke into Katherine's ear. She inhaled a full gasp of air before she spoke.

"Do you have time to speak to a dying girl?" Katherine could hear him hold his breath before he said the name she's been waiting to hear him say.

"Katerina."

Silence.

"We shouldn't do this." Elijah had said, wanting to end this conversation. They had nothing to talk about, the both of them literally had nothing to say. This would just hurt them both, Elijah knew that.

"Why, Elijah?" And both of them knew what she meant. For five centuries they've been playing the game of cat and mouse. The shunned girl running from the lunatic's brother. They have tossed whatever feelings they had for one another for their own reasons. Survival and family. It changed both of them but Katherine in more ways than one. She was his the complete opposite to his moral demeanor. Manipulative and with her ledger dripping red. But Elijah knew the sweet girl of 1492 who wanted to play chase was in there. Katherine wanted to know why.

"What kind of man would I be if I didn't believe that my Katerina was hidden beneath that Katherine façade?" He answered. Katherine said nothing, and in between the static they understood. Perhaps they were never just meant to be. They were not the same people that met in England five hundred years ago, but they will always be chasing. Elijah will always love the Katerina from the past. And Katherine's present can never be able to love Elijah because there will always be a reason to set them apart.

"Goodbye, Elijah." And with that she hung up, exiting the payphone booth as Katerina and entering the world as Elena Gilbert.

" _ **Sometimes we have no choice but to walk away."**_

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 **Author's Note: As always, I hoped you enjoyed reading this, as much I enjoyed (more like cry over) writing it. To those who had been PM'ing and reviewing my old story** _ **No Holds Barred,**_ **don't fret. I plan on finishing that story and will be posting the next two chapters on Saturday (PST).**

 **I haven't said it but I really am sorry for hanging you guys so high and dry. I promise I'll be spending my last month of vacation making it up to you guys. Til next time :)**


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